Angry No Man’s Sky gamers bring Sony’s refund policy to light
Sony's digital video game refund policy is under fire again from angry customers after the release of No Man's Sky.Eurogamer has been contacted by a number of No Man's Sky players who have failed to get a refund from Sony after buying No Man's Sky from the PlayStation Store. Players have been demanding refunds for a number of reasons, from crashes to motion sickness. Others feel that they did not get the game that they expected due to the title's promotional material.
Sony’s digital video game refund policy is under fire again from angry customers after the release of No Man’s Sky.
Eurogamer has been contacted by a number of No Man’s Sky players who have failed to get a refund from Sony after buying No Man’s Sky from the PlayStation Store. Players have been demanding refunds for a number of reasons, from crashes to motion sickness. Others feel that they did not get the game that they expected due to the title’s promotional material.
The PlayStation Store’s refund policy states that players can cancel a digital content purchase within 14 days from the date of transaction as long as they have not started downloading or streaming it. Once a player has started downloading, they can only get a refund if “the content is faulty.”
Eurogamer reader Blastiel stated that he played No Man’s Sky for an hour-and-a-half, and that the game crashed three times during that period. He spoke with a PlayStation customer support rep to ask for a refund. He was told that he could receive a refund, but if he did he would never be able to play No Man’s Sky again.
“The practice Sony is employing is a bit underhanded, to say the least,” Blastiel stated. “I was told I couldn’t re-buy it off the store digitally, and I couldn’t buy a physical copy because whatever system they employ in the background wouldn’t let me run it. They delete the license from your account, and that seems to put a block on it.
“I would happily re-buy the game at a later date if it improved, if the features promised were put in, if the crashing was fixed, because these things do get fixed over time. But I didn’t really want to get my money back and then never be able to play it again. It just seem counter-productive. It’s like they put a gun to my head.”
A player named Mark asked Sony for a refund after finding No Man’s Sky caused him motion sickness.
“I’ve occasionally suffered from gaming-induced motion sickness in the past, and it can be incredibly unpleasant and deliberating,” Mark stated. “At its worst, you might as well write off the rest of the day and go to bed.
“My current situation means that my gaming budget is limited, and I couldn’t afford to have paid £50 for a game that makes me feel ill, so I requested a refund from Sony. I was told I would receive a response within 24 hours. Four days later, a reply arrived, declining my request.”
Sony’s refund policy promises that those who get a refund will be able to re-buy and play No Man’s Sky again, which suggests Sony needs to send an updated memo to its customer support staff. Unfortunately, those who spoke to Eurogamer have dropped their refund requests.
No Man’s Sky is available on PlayStation 4 and PC.